South Carolina Might Try Electronic License Plates

It's not the first time the idea of electronic license plates has been brought up, but now the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles is considering it.

The plates would be electronic screens, similar to Amazon's Kindle e-reader, and could be changed electronically by the DMV.

These changes would allow the state to put anything it wants on your license plate.  According to WSPA, these plates would allow the state to put up Amber Alert messages on license plates, electronically note if the tag is stolen, suspended, or in any other violation.  Plus, the registration tag on the plate is automatically updated upon renewal.

But the idea of electronic license plates is a little odd for some, maybe even Big Brother-ish.

South Carolina officials say that the plates would not be used to track the whereabouts of its carrier.  In South Carolina, it costs about $4-7 to make a traditional license plate.  This new device would cost $100.

But officials there say they could recoup much needed funds from drivers traveling with expired tags and the uninsured.

However, in 2010, California tossed around the idea of using electronic license plates as mini-billboards on all of California's highways to close the $19 billion deficit the state was facing.

There are no current proposals for such a device in Louisiana, Texas, or Arkansas.  But what do you think about this?  Is this Big Brother reaching in too far (like with the required TV sets everyone was forced to own in the novel, 1984)?  Or is this a great idea for our state to consider?

WSPA-TV